Song Review: Blake Shelton’s New Single, ‘Came Here to Forget’

Blake Shelton‘s divorce from Miranda Lambert was one of the most gossiped-about stories in country music last year. His quick rebound with The Voice co-star Gwen Stefani only fanned the flames, and has now made them an official celebrity couple. These major life events have naturally flowed into Shelton’s songwriting, resulting in his latest single, “Came Here to Forget.”

Usually, heartbreak can translate into some of the artist’s best and most meaningful work. Unfortunately, that didn’t quite happen with Shelton’s new release. Instead of diving into his emotion, he simply half-heartedly glamorizes the idea of two lonely people hooking up after downing a few drinks. The pop-country sound that has been featured in his more recent tracks goes off the deep end from the very beginning and never seems to recover.

This, along with cringe-inducing lines like “keep leaning it on in closer, keep salting the rim, getting even with her and with him,” eliminate any feeling of romance and seems to dwell on payback rather than moving on. Overall, the song is simply a rather unenjoyable reincarnation of Luke Bryan and Karen Fairchild‘s “Home Alone Tonight,” which at least seems to have a sense of humor.